


Birthday Game

by trixiechick



Category: Free!
Genre: Games, Kissing, M/M, Some Cuddling, character birthday
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-15
Updated: 2013-12-15
Packaged: 2018-01-04 16:50:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1083374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trixiechick/pseuds/trixiechick
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nagisa has a plan and definitely <i>goals</i> for Rei's birthday...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Birthday Game

**Author's Note:**

> for Rei's birthday! and just barely on time!!

"Reiiiiiiiii," Nagisa whined. "Let me use your pockets!"

"Nagisa-kun, pockets aren't something than can be loaned out," Rei patiently tried to explain, but Nagisa was too busy trying to shove his hands into Rei's pockets anyway. "N-Nagisa! You know, it's already well into December and it's been cold for a while! Shouldn't you be carrying mittens with you?"

Nagisa pouted, and it wasn't hard to tell that he was working hard at being extra cute, "Ah, but Rei-chan, your pockets are so warm and comfortable!" He beamed at Rei.

Blushing, Rei turned his head and adjusted his glasses. "N-Never the less, we don't travel all the way home together! You can't use my pockets!" He wriggled and squirmed, trying to oust Nagisa's hands, which were wiggling and squirming on their own. Which... was... if Rei didn't deal with the situation soon, then he'd have a whole different problem on his hands...

"Rei-kun!"

Both boys looked up to see a girl across the street wildly waving at them. As soon as traffic let up, she rushed across the street, leaving three other girls behind her whispering to each other.

"Rei-kun, that is you! It's been so long!" she stopped right in front of them, beaming.

"Kasumi-senpai, it's good to see you," Rei smiled, looking... suave?

Nagisa narrowed his eyes and watched the girl carefully. Rei... used her given name. She was cute, taller than Nagisa but shorter than Rei, with dark tights on under her uniform skirt. Nagisa was pretty sure he recognized that uniform as being from a fancy school nearby. She had her dark brown hair in a cute pageboy cut, with one side tucked neatly behind her ear with... was that a butterfly clip? Her face was probably considered cute, and her makeup was nicely done. Who was this girl?

"Wait, let me see your winter uniform!" She reached over and opened Rei's jacket all on her own. Nagisa's eyes widened just a bit. "Ah, how nice! So modern! I always thought you looked nice in a suit," she ran her hand down Rei's tie.

Nagisa did not like this girl. He stepped closer to Rei and raised his chin, looking at Rei pointedly.

"So, how do you like high school? How is the track team? Did you qualify to compete?"

"Eh," Rei smiled kindly, looking a bit embarrassed. He redid the buttons on his jacket. "So far, high school is... fun, I think. I joined the track team, but I actually switched to the swim club."

"Ehhhh?!" She looked shocked. "Really? You? But I always thought you wanted to compete with your big brother? Swimming? Can you even swim?"

"It didn't take long for me to master the fundamentals," Rei asserted, straightening his glasses.

Before Nagisa could even snicker, that Kasumi elbowed him and winked. "That means he had no clue, right?"

"Oh, no," Nagisa smiled smoothly. "Rei-chan even swam with us in the relay, and we qualified for regionals."

"Seriously?" She turned back to Rei and beamed. "That's so cool! What stroke are you?"

"I swim the butterfly," Rei announced proudly.

"Wow!" She leaned back and considered it. "I can't picture that at all! You have to call me and let me know when you're swimming next! I want to see!" she shoved him a bit, pouting.

The hairs on the back of Nagisa's head rose a bit.

"Well, we won't be swimming again until next year, obviously, when it gets warm again. Senpai, you're an exam student, right? Have you chosen which colleges you'll be trying for?" he asked her.

She made a face at him. "Don't remind me of unpleasant things! Ah, I don't even want to think about college at the moment! Right now, I'm trying to picture you in a speedo!"

"W-well, stop that!" Rei stuttered, flushed. "I don't wear a speedo! I wear... you know, a competition swim suit! It helps to maximize the efficiency of my strokes by minimizing drag from the water!"

She laughed, and winked at Nagisa. "He's always been like this. Even on dates, he'd be super meticulous and there's be a _specific_ right and wrong way to do _everything_. So cute," she gave Rei a warm look. "Oh! By the way, I'm Itou Kasumi, a third year at Yamanoue High. Rei, I can't believe how rude you are! You didn't even introduce me to your friend!"

Nagisa chuckled as if he were amused. She had said _dates_. "He's probably just intimidated by you, _senpai_. I'm Hazuki Nagisa. I'm in class with Rei-chan."

Nagisa and that Kasumi locked eyes for a moment, and Nagisa had no doubt at all that she could see right through him.

"Nagisa-kun is actually the reason I joined the swim club," Rei cheerfully informed Kasumi.

"Oh, is that so?" she smiled at Nagisa, tilting her head to the side. "My, you must be _very_ persuasive."

"You'd be surprised!" Nagisa smirked, and made a cute face.

Her eyes hardened.

"So you two used to go on _dates?_ " Nagisa raised an eyebrow at Rei.

"Oh!" Rei flushed, and cleared his throat. He quickly readjusted his glasses. "That was, well, a _long_ time ago, you know, we were in middle school, I was a first year, and Kasumi-senpai was a third year..."

"Ohho, a first year landing a cute third year," Nagisa winked, and grinned at _her_. "Rei-chan must have had some _game_ back then, huh?"

Kasumi giggled, and batted her eyelashes at Rei. "He was always so stiff and formal! Well, I suppose he hasn't changed very much," she patted Rei's chest affectionately.

"I-It was just innocent, kid-type stuff, though," Rei frowned, looking nervously between them. "We went for ice cream and to the arcade, or the movies. Kasumi-senpai was getting ready for exams then, too. It was a pure first love situation!"

"Mm," Kasumi frowned. "That's true, but... you weren't _my_ first boyfriend. And I did get your first kiss!" She winked at Rei, who looked away, flustered.

"Oh? Do you keep it in a box?" Nagisa asked, frowning cutely.

Kasumi just smirked at him. "That does remind me, though. It's nearly your birthday, isn't it, Rei-kun? Then," she leaned in, and kissed Rei.

Right on the mouth.

It was a short kiss, more intimate than a familial one, but less than a kiss between lovers. She stepped back, looking _very_ pleased with herself. "Happy Birthday, then, Rei-kun! Why don't you give me a call sometime? I need to be able to take a break every now and again, after all!"

"Thank you, senpai, and I will," Rei smiled at her. Suave. Easy.

_That **player**_ , Nagisa thought.

Kasumi waved cutely, and turned to walk off. Rei turned, too, continuing on to Nagisa's house. Nagisa followed him, stuffing his hands into Rei's pocket. He ignored Rei's protests, which were less fervent than before.

Nagisa had some thinking to do.

  


* * *

  


"We're here," Rin called out. "It's ok that I brought a guest, right?"

"Sorry for intruding," Nitori called out happily.

"It's nice to see you again, Nitori-kun," Makoto smiled. He put down the tray of snacks he was holding, and greeted the newest additions. "I'm glad you both made it."

"Che, that four-eyes is lucky his birthday is on the weekend, otherwise I wouldn't bother with his stupid birthday," Rin rolled his eyes. Nitori, Gou, and Makoto smiled at Rin's act. 

"Well, I'm glad you're here, and when Rei gets here, I'm sure he'll be happy, too," Makoto beamed.

"Why is this party at my house?" Haru came out of the kitchen.

"We had Makoto-senpai's birthday party here, too," Gou reminded him.

"That was Makoto," Haru looked away, and set down his tray of food. Not surprisingly, mackerel was at the center, but there were also some other dishes, things Rei liked. 

"Oh, am I special?" Makoto teased Haru.

"I didn't say that," Haru frowned, looking away.

Rin sidled right up to Makoto. "Yeah, this is Haru we're talking about. He probably just meant that you two live close, anyway."

"Makoto knows what I mean," Haru glared at Rin.

Rin threw his arm around Makoto's shoulder and grinned at him. "Is that so? But I don't think Makoto is really as telepathic as you think he is."

Gou and Nitori giggled together in a corner while Rin and Haru glared at each other.

"Now, now," Makoto began, but it no longer mattered.

Nagisa burst in the front door, exclaiming, "The birthday boy is here! Surprise!"

"Na _gi_ sa! That's not how surprise parties work!" Gou scolded him.

"This isn't a surprise party," Nagisa stuck his tongue out at her, dragging Rei inside to where everyone else was.

"Th-thank you, everyone, this is so..." Rei began.

"All right, let's begin!" Nagisa threw Rei down on the floor, and then pulled something out of his bag. "Happy Birthday, Rei-chan! Everyone loves you!" He pulled off the string on the party popper, dousing Rei with confetti and thin streamers. "Congratulations on turning sixteen!"

"Oy, Nagisa, remember this isn't your house," Rin complained, brushing excess confetti off his shoulder.

Rei just sighed, and took his glasses off to de-streamer them. Nagisa took that chance to slam a crudely made birthday crown on Rei's head. It was made of felt and fleece and had bells and sparkly poms on the tips of its jester-like protrusions. "N-Nagisa!" Rei objected, nearly falling over.

"Ok! Perfect! This is my gift to you, Rei-chan! I made you... a birthday game!" Nagisa proudly pulled it out of his backpack. Rei shrank back a little, probably from the sinister edge to Nagisa's excitement. "Here, see, I drew you on the cover," Nagisa pointed to a poorly-drawn slightly surrealistic image with dark purplish-black hair and red glasses, with butterflies coming out of his ears. "And inside...!" He opened the box, and took out the playing board, which Nagisa had decorated with butterflies, which swarmed around a winding rainbow pathway, leading to a giant crown in the middle.

"Amazing! This is incredible, Hazuki-kun!" Nitori exclaimed, leaning in to get a closer look.

Nagisa noticed Nitori for the first time. "That's... that's _true_ , I _am_ incredible... Rin's friend. Anyway! Let's get started, ok! Gou, you get the pink butterfly, because you're a girl."

" _So_ glad you noticed," she rolled her eyes, but she sat down before the game board anyway. 

"And Rin, you get red," Nagisa beamed at him.

Rin frowned at the poorly made red paper butterfly piece. "What the hell?"

"Mako-chan gets green, of course. And Haru-chan gets blue. I get the gold piece. Mm... that's all that I made, but, ah... Rin's friend, let's see... oh, here's a paperclip! You can use that! It... kinda matches your hair!" Nagisa beamed, holding out the paperclip proudly.

Reluctantly, Nitori took it. "Ah... th-thank you, Hazuki-kun. And by the way, my name is..."

"Ok! Let's start!" Nagisa clapped his hands together.

"Start? What about me?" Rei frowned, looking over the game board with dismay.

"You're the birthday king! The goal is to reach you!" Nagisa beamed. "Every time a player lands on a square, you have to pull a card the same color as the square, and read the requirement. That's what the player has to do for that turn. If the player won't do it, then he... or Gou... will have to pay a penalty. As king, you make up the penalty, too."

"Is this going to be like truth or dare? With... butterflies?" Gou frowned.

"Don't worry, don't worry! There probably won't be any penalties. So! Rei-chan, you pick who goes first!" Nagisa sat down, bouncing a bit on his haunches.

"Hey. I made food," Haru frowned, pointing to the dishes he'd laid out carefully.

"Great! We can eat and play at the same time!" Nagisa grabbed a potsticker and shoved it in his mouth.

Rei rolled his eyes. "All right, well... I suppose... Makoto-senpai, you should go first, since you're the captain."

"Hmph, not _my_ captain," Rin sniffed, grabbing a handful of snacks.

"We could flip for it," Makoto smiled at Rin.

"No, just go, Mako-chan!" Nagisa sighed. "Here, here, all our pieces start on the colors of our butterflies. So you go here, and Gou, you're here... yeah, you get it. Oh! And if you land on your own color, you get to go again! Mm, Rin's friend, just start here."

"His name is..." Rin began.

"Mako-chan! Roll the dice!!" Nagisa urged.

Makoto and Rin shared a look, and Makoto grinned and rolled while Rin huffed. "Ok! I got a nine... so I'm... I landed on red."

"Take a red card, Rei!" Nagisa prompted.

"I got it, I got it," Rei sighed. Each card had been slipped into an envelope the same color as the card. "Ok, let's see... ah... _Player must tell the King a First Impression_. Eh? Nagisa-kun, what does this mean?"

Nagisa rolled his eyes, chewing down hard on all the food he'd shoved in his mouth. "I's pr'dy o'vio's," he said, choking down his food. He swallowed hard, and grinned. "Mako-chan, you have to tell Rei-chan what your first impression of him was!"

"Eh?" Makoto looked alarmed, but he quickly got into it. "Um, let me think... the first time I met Rei... ah... oh, wasn't that when you dragged us out to see the track team? And you were convinced Rei would be perfect as the final member of the swim team. We watched you jump. I guess, then, my first impression was... that you were very athletic... and that you probably wouldn't join the swim team," Makoto laughed. "But, I figured Nagisa would manage it somehow."

"Huh? Does that mean your first impression of me was that I'd be easy for Nagisa-kun to bully?" Rei frowned.

"Yup, he decided you were a big wuss," Rin laughed, picking up the dice.

"Th-that's not it!" Makoto protested, but Rin had already rolled, and was moving his piece.

"Ok! I landed on yellow."

"That's gold," Nagisa corrected.

"Go for it, four-eyes," Rin challenged.

Rei shook his head, and pulled out a gold card. "All right! It says... _Player must tell the King something admirable about the King._ Nagisa-kun, we need to work on your grammar. So, Rin-senpai! What do you find admirable about me?" Rei looked at Rin triumphantly.

Rin rolled his eyes. "Who said I admired _anything_ about you? Che. Well, I guess it's not bad how you're a bit gutsy. Coming to my school to harass me about shit and stuff like that."

"Ohho! A rare honest moment from Rin-Rin!" Nagisa happily laughed.

"Sh-shut up!" Rin glared at Nagisa, raising his fist, but Nagisa was too far away, and anyway, he laughing too hard to care what Rin was doing.

"My turn," Haru picked up the dice, ignoring Rin and Nagisa. "Mm. I landed on blue, so I go again. ... Pink."

"O-okay... let's see..." Rei got out the appropriate card. " _Player must tell King how he is perceived._ ...What, Nagisa, does that mean Haruka-senpai has to tell me what he thinks of me?" Rei paled, looking panicked.

Haru started to speak, though, immediately. "You think too much. Too serious. But, it's ok, since it's you."

There was silence after Haru's solemn words, and Rei blushed all the way down his neck.

"Ok, Haru, way to bring the party down! My turn!" Nagisa rolled, and then made a big show of plopping his piece down on each square, counting it out. "Green! I get a green card!"

"All right..." Rei's hands shook a bit as he pulled out the green card, and then read it. "Ah... _Player must tell one thing enviable about the King._ Wow, you finally phrased something correctly."

"Rei-chan's grades! I wish I had grades like yours," Nagisa pouted.

"Well, you could, if you studied," Rei happily informed him.

Rin and Gou laughed, and Nagisa pouted.

Quietly, Nitori picked up the dice, and rolled. He moved his paperclip across the board. "Hm, I got purple."

"Oh! Yes," Rei smiled at Nitori. He got out a purple card, and read it. " _Player must tell something impressive about King_. Oh, but Nitori-kun and I don't really know each other all that well..." 

"That's ok!" Nitori beamed, hugging his knees. Nagisa frowned at him. "I can think of something, though. Rin-senpai told me that you only just learned to swim this year, and you already swam a butterfly in competition. That's super impressive, Ryuugazaki-kun! I can't even swim the butterfly, and I've been swimming for years!"

"Well, Rei can only swim butterfly," Gou frowned.

" _And_ Rei is incredible!" Nagisa scowled at Gou. " _Much_ more impressive than someone who's just been _working hard_ for years!"

"Hey! Don't knock hard work!" Rin growled, and Nagisa actually backed off a bit, looking abashed.

Shaking her head, Gou picked up the dice. "All right, all right, my turn. Let's see. Ok, I'm on blue."

"Blue..." Rei pulled out a card. "Mm. _Player must tell where player would take King for a day._ Eh? This... this doesn't mean... like a _date_ , right? Nagisa-kun?"

"Noooo," Nagisa rolled his eyes. "Just means like... where would you like to go with Rei?"

"We _really_ need to work on your grammar. It's sad to see a Japanese teenager who can barely form sentences!" Rei admonished.

Nagisa just stuck his tongue out at Rei.

"Mm," Gou had been seriously considering the question the whole time, ignoring them. "I think... I would take Rei to a gym. Someplace with all kinds of workout equipment! Because I'm sure Rei could demonstrate the proper way to use each apparatus and do every exercise. And I could see his muscles at work..." Gou's expression went a bit glassy.

Rin lurched forward, shoving his finger at his sister. "You are not going to _any_ gym full of sweaty guys to look at _muscles!_ What the hell, Gou?! And you!" he turned on Rei. "If you start showing off _muscles_ to my baby sister, I'll..."

"It's ok, it's ok," Makoto soothed Rin, rubbing his hand over Rin's shoulder in a soothing circle. "It was just a hypothetical question! And Gou-chan was only thinking as a swim club manager, anyway!" He winked at Gou, who smirked back.

There were some things that brothers didn't need to know.

"Your turn again, Makoto!" Nagisa declared.

"Ok!" He picked up the dice, suitably assured that Rin was calm enough again. "Let's see... you said the point of the game was to reach the... the crown?" Makoto frowned.

"Yup!" Nagisa nodded.

"Nagisa, the board is too small!" Gou laughed. "Someone's going to reach it on this turn, probably!"

"It's ok, it's ok!" Nagisa brushed off their complaints. "The point it to just play and have fun and let Rei be King! Games that last too long are boring, anyway!"

"Well, I don't mind this not taking too long," Rei sighed. "This is all a bit embarrassing. You've got gold, Makoto-senpai?"

"Looks like it," Makoto nodded.

"Ok! Ah... oh... mm... it says... _Player must tell one thing about King that is... covetous..._ Nagisa! What sort of question is _that?_ " Rei sighed.

"What? Covetous? That means something Mako-chan would want what Rei-chan has, right?" he frowned, checking with Gou.

"That's pretty similar to _enviable_ ," Gou pointed out.

"Well, when _you_ make your first board game, _you'll_ realize how difficult it can be to have a lot of variety. It doesn't matter, just answer the question, Mako-chan!" Nagisa urged.

"Mm, well... oh, when we were in your room, I noticed how nice and tidy everything was, and your desk was so well arranged! So I guess... your tidy room and neat desk... is what I'd pick..." Makoto smiled sheepishly at Rei, who smiled back at him.

"You've been to Rei's room? I've never been," Gou pouted.

"You don't need to be going to boy's rooms!" Rin burst out, grabbing the dice. "Geez, I'm going to tell mom you need to go to an all-girls school. Let's just get this shitty game over with! Aargh, I'm one square shy! Ok, give me the stupid green question!"

Trying to contain his amusement, Rei got out a green card. "Ok! _Player must tell one thing the King should do._ Hm, is this supposed to be..."

"You should fix your damned breathing on the butterfly! Your rhythm is all wrong, it totally pisses me off just thinking about it! Ok, Haru, you go!"

Haru nodded, and took the dice, unaware of everyone else laughing. He rolled a twelve. "Ah... I overshot the crown, is that bad?"

"Nope, that means you got there! Yay, Haru-chan is our winner! Now, now, now, Rei, read the Winner card! It's... yeah, that one with the sparkles and the crown... oh, let's call it the crown card! Ok, read the crown card!" Nagisa was practically vibrating with excitement.

"I got it, I got it," Rei sighed indulgently. He took the card out of the decorated envelope, causing some of the sparkles and shiny stars to fall off. The card was equally messily decorated. Rei started to read it, but then stopped, turning bright red. "N-Nagisa! I can't read this!" he objected.

"Fine, fine, I'll read it!" Nagisa burst out. " _All players must now give the King a birthday kiss!_ Yay! Ok, Mako-chan, you're first!" He called out the contents of the card from memory, as if he'd been waiting for this all along.

"Eh? Me? I have to?" Makoto blushed, and Rei blushed.

"N-no, that is... NAGISA!" Rei wailed.

"Whaaaaat, it's _tradition_ , the birthday kiss, c'mon, c'mon, just get it over with!" Nagisa urged Makoto.

"F-fine..." Makoto sighed. He leaned over and smiled apologetically at Rei. He brushed Rei's bangs aside, and kissed his forehead. "Thank you for joining our team, Rei."

"Yay!" Nagisa clapped.

Rei turned red to the tips of his ears, and he looked away shyly. "Th-thank you, Makoto-senpai..."

"What are you getting all blushy for? He only kissed you because of the game! And only on the forehead, damn it," Rin complained. He got between Rei and Makoto, and grabbed Rei, kissing him hard on the left cheek. "Happy Birthday, dork."

Rei was too stunned to say anything, and then Haru was coming up on his right, kissing his other cheek. "Happy Birthday, Rei."

"Th-thank you," Rei stuttered.

Gou giggled. She leaned in and kissed Rei's nose. "Happy Birthday, Rei! Let's continue to work hard for the swim team!"

"Yes, let's," Rei smiled back at her.

Nitori gave Nagisa a sidelong look, and then smirked to himself. He got up and went to Rei. "I look forward to swimming against you for two more years, Ryuugazaki-kun," and then he leaned in and kissed Rei.

On the corner of his mouth.

Nagisa and Nitori shared a look as Nitori pulled back, but before Rei could stammer out a response, Nagisa jumped to his feet. "FINALLY, it's _my_ turn!" He jumped over the board, knocking it away, and grabbed onto Rei, knocking him down. And then he kissed him.

Really, really kissed him.

Pushing his tongue past Rei's lips, and wiggling his hips against Rei's...

"Na-Nagisa!" Makoto turned away, covering his face.

Rin shook his head. "Damn it, shortie. You're cleaning up!"

Gou quickly whipped out her phone and took a picture. But then, they were still kissing. "Damn, I should have made a video! Nagisa, keep kissing him!" Rei made some noise under Nagisa, but Nagisa wasn't letting him up. "Ok! Good recording!" The noises Rei was making were _definitely_ complaints, but his hands did come around Nagisa's back.

"Oy. Nagisa. This is something you do in _private_ ," Haru frowned.

Makoto looked over his shoulder fearfully. "Nagisa! Let Rei catch his breath!"

"I think Ryuugazaki-kun is fine," Nitori commented casually. "I'm pretty sure he's had some experience with this. Are they dating?" he asked Gou.

"This could be the beginning of it! And I've got it recorded for posterity!" she replied gleefully.

Rin kicked Nagisa. "Oy, he's gonna make a mess in his pants in a minute, and my sister is watching!"

Finally, Nagisa leaned back. "OOOOOKAY. Happy Birthday, Rei!" he threw his arms up.

"NAGISA, I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" Rei shut his eyes tightly, still laying on the floor, his mouth wet from Nagisa's kiss.

  


* * *

  


"It was nice of Mako-chan to get Haru-chan to spend the night with him. Makes it a lot easier to clean, right?" Nagisa cheerfully asked Rei.

"I'm not helping you clean," Rei declared glumly. "This was all _your_ genius idea. I'm just glad that no one is mad at us."

"Oh, what's to get mad about?" Nagisa stuck out his tongue, wrapping the cord around the vacuum. _Most_ the confetti was cleaned up now. And Makoto had taken down the decorations before they left. All they had left to clean was the dishes. Or, as Rei pointed out, all _Nagisa_ had left to clean was the dishes.

"You planned all of this... right? All so that..." Rei flushed, looking away. He was too bothered to even adjust his glasses.

Nagisa noticed that, but tried to play it off. "Don't be such a prude! It's not like I stole your first... anyway, it was just a game, a game!" He picked up the dishes, and took them to the trash in the kitchen, to scrape off the excess debris. 

"A game _you_ made," Rei sighed. "A game that ended with a kiss."

Nagisa started the water.

"How long have you been planning this? Was it because... because we met Kasumi-senpai on the street?" Rei asked.

"I can't hear you, let me finish the dishes. And just... Haru was right, you know! You think too much! This is exactly the sort of thing that you don't need to think about too much! So, just forget it!"

"I can't forget it," Rei sighed, troubled. He looked away. He knew Nagisa _could_ hear him, so he continued. "It wasn't my first kiss, but..."

"Look, I was just teasing you a bit!" Nagisa stopped him. "It's _really_ no big deal! But, you know, I always felt like Rei-chan would be a good kisser, and I was right! Did you read a book on the Theory of Kissing while you were dating Kasumi-chan? 'Cause you got really really good! It doesn't really matter, though. It really doesn't! I know you probably still like Kasumi-chan, and it sounded like she still liked you, so you could probably go out with her again. Oh, but she'll be going to college soon. Well, there are lots of cute girls like her at school, and..."

"She's in love with my brother."

Nagisa stopped dead, and turned to look at Rei from over his shoulder.

Rei was smiling sadly at him. "I... I knew her from before I started middle school... because she was on the track team with my older brother. She was the female captain. He was the outgoing captain for the boys' team. She used to come to our house to ask him questions..." Rei sighed. "I knew she liked him, but I also knew my brother didn't like her back. To him, she was just... a nice kouhai. When I asked her out, then, I didn't really expect her to say yes. But I thought... I thought at the time, well... maybe... she'd... see me as... a replacement for him. And she did. That was all she saw me as." Rei looked away.

Nagisa turned the water off and dried off his hands, coming to the doorway to listen.

"Three years ago, then, I invited her to my house for my birthday dinner. I don't think she was very excited about it, but I told her... I told her that my brother was going to be there, so she told me that she wouldn't miss it. I went to her house to pick her up, and in the alley behind my building, she kissed me. And... it was sweet, and it was nice. And then we went inside, and she spent the rest of the evening fawning all over my big brother. I wasn't that hurt... I knew all along that she was only interested in me because of him... but I... I thought then that it would have been nice... if maybe... she _didn't_ feel that way." Rei took a deep breath, and smiled up at Nagisa. "So, you're right, it wasn't my first kiss. But I thought... it was probably the first time I'd been kissed... by someone who... someone who liked _me_. Unless... I'm misinterpreting things...?" he looked at Nagisa.

He looked _afraid_.

Nagisa tossed the tea towel over his shoulder and lunged at Rei, grabbing a hold of him. "You're not wrong! You _know_ you're not wrong! You know how I feel about you!"

"I don't know anything unless you tell me!" Rei teased. "I'm not the sort of guy who reads between the lines!"

"Now you're just tormenting me," Nagisa pouted.

"You planned that whole game so you could kiss me," Rei prompted Nagisa.

Nagisa huffed. "It was a _lot_ of work, too! You should appreciate me!"

"I do," Rei laughed, ruffling Nagisa's hair. "But you kissed me in front of everyone!"

"Gou-chan even has pictures!" Nagisa proudly pointed out.

"Nagisa!" Rei sighed.

"Hey, Rei... it was really nice of Mako-chan and Haru-chan to make sure we could be alone, huh? Maybe we could..." he snaked his hands up the back of Rei's shirt. "Find a few _firsts_ that the two of us could share?" he wiggled his eyebrows at Rei.

"N-N-N-Nagisa! We... we _can't!_ This is Haruka-senpai's _home!_ " Rei wailed.

"He's not here! I'm not suggesting he should _watch!_ Not that I would mind if he did..." Nagisa trailed off, his mind wandering off into fantasy.

"Nagisa!" Rei pinched Nagisa in the waist, causing Nagisa to writhe and wail. "Stop that! We're leaving this place _perfectly clean!_ Haruka-senpai trusted us!"

"Ok, ok! But... since we're going to clean up... we should make it _really_ dirty first, right?" Nagisa gave Rei a wicked smirk.

Rei's heart sank, knowing his track record at refusing Nagisa. 

  


* * *

  



End file.
